


How to Properly Bond with Your Girlfriend's Dad (through coffee and foiling a robbery)

by ThefirstRanger



Category: Nancy Drew (TV 2019)
Genre: Engagement, F/M, post series I guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:21:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23797600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThefirstRanger/pseuds/ThefirstRanger
Summary: Ace has to pick up Mr. Drew from the airport and he really needs to ask his girlfriend's father an important question, but Carson Drew remembers the last time they were in a car together led to a prison break, so he's in a less than generous mood. It goes downhill from there.
Relationships: Ace & Carson Drew, Ace/Nancy Drew, Nancy Drew/Joe Hardy
Comments: 10
Kudos: 67





	How to Properly Bond with Your Girlfriend's Dad (through coffee and foiling a robbery)

**Author's Note:**

> I rewatched "The Lady Larkspur Lane" and really wanted to see more team-ups of Carson Drew looking on worriedly while Ace breaks the law. Then this fic happened. Enjoy!

Ace's phone rang and he immediately picked up. The id said it was Nancy calling and he idly wondered why she was calling him from the airport.

"Hey babe, can you pick up my dad from the airport today?" 

The words tumbled out of his mouth before Ace realized what he was saying. "Of course. What time?" 

He paused for a second, realizing what just came out of his mouth. Why had he just agreed to that? He and Mr. Drew didn't get along the greatest and Ace was pretty sure Mr. Drew didn't like him all that much. 

Nancy sounded a bit shocked, but also pleased that her boyfriend was making an effort. 

"Well that was easy to convince you. This case is taking longer than I thought and I'm so close to finishing it. It won't be done in time to pick up my dad, but I'll be home for supper." 

As long as she was home for dinner. Ace needed Nancy at dinner for a couple of reasons, namely to ease the tension, but also because of the small object burning a hole in his pocket. 

"When does he need to be picked up?" 

"In 20 minutes." 

Even over the phone, Ace could picture Nancy's face as she talked. There would be an apologetic cringe on her face right now.

"The airport is 30 minutes away." He'd be late to pick up her dad.

"I know, I know," Nancy paused and her tone suddenly turned mischievous. "I'll make it up to you." 

Oh man. "Promise?" 

"Promise."

"Then it's a good thing I'm already on the road because I had a feeling you'd be a little late."

"You know me so well. Love you." With that Nancy hung up the phone and Ace sighed. 

Even with the head start, he was going to be late picking up Carson Drew. A great way to start the holidays.

~

"Where's Nancy?" were the first words that came out of Mr. Drew's mouth as soon as he saw Ace pull up to the pickup line at the airport. 

Carson Drew skipped over the pleasantries and went straight to the point. That didn't bode well for the trip back. 

"She got caught up in a case and sent me to pick you up."

"You're late." 

There was no good response to that so Ace ignored it. "Let me grab your bags." 

As Carson got into the front seat and Ace threw his bags in the trunk, Ace idly wondered what Mr. Drew's deal was with him.

Oh sure, Ace didn't get any hostile glares but whenever it was him and Mr. Drew alone, Ace always got the feeling that Mr. Drew didn't approve of him. It was more a vague underlying feeling than anything Carson actually did. 

And now Ace was all alone with Nancy's dad for an incredibly tense and awkward car ride. Exactly what Ace wanted in order to make a good impression on Nancy's father. They'd been dancing around the issue and all the chit chat had been exhausted after Mr. Drew had asked him about his brother and the car lapsed into silence on the empty freeway.

The silent tension was getting to be a bit overwhelming and Ace had to break it or he'd go crazy. 

"Remember the last time we were in a van together?" 

That probably wasn't the best thing to say as it caused Carson to put his head in his hands, perhaps relieving the time years ago when he was a prison escapee. Ace felt like it was a positive memory for the two of them considering he saved Mr. Drew's life, but maybe not. 

"I'd rather not remember that." 

"Ok, yeah sure." That was a fair point.

It grew silent again. Ace wished Nancy was here to fill the silence; she always knew what to say.

"Can we pull into a gas station? I need more coffee," grumbled Carson.

There was an exit right ahead and Ace silently switched lanes and headed off the highway without a word. 

~

The gas station was empty and dirty, but it had really low prices and Ace appreciated that. It probably wouldn't have great coffee, however, which would just put Mr. Drew into a worse mood.

He pulled up to one of the stations and parked. Both men got out of the car into the cold air.

"I'll fill up while you get your coffee."

Carson nodded. "Be right back." 

Ace thought about asking Mr. Drew if he could grab him a bag of chips but decided not to press his luck.

The tank took a minute to fill up. Ace grabbed the gas handle and was about to put it back in the station when a cold feeling at the back of his neck made him freeze. 

"Don't move and I won't shoot." growled a rough voice. 

Ace didn't dare move though his mind was racing a million miles per minute. Where was Mr. Drew? Was anyone else around? What would Nancy do?

The voice continued. "Walk over to the side of the building." 

Ace slowly walked around to the dingy side and his heart sank when he saw Mr. Drew already kneeling on the ground and a short man standing over him.

"Get on the ground!" growled the voice behind Ace's head and Ace complied. 

Kneeling on the ground, Ace could finally see the two robbers. One, most likely the leader, was tall with an ugly face and the shorter blonde one was holding a gun as well. 

"Are you alright?" asked Carson, his eyes never leaving their captors. 

"I'm fine. What about you?" 

Carson didn't respond and Ace could see his eyes narrowing. It was the exact same look Nancy got when she was solving a case. Mr. Drew was up to something and Ace didn't know what. He had never seen that look on Mr. Drew’s face before and it was making him a bit nervous. 

"Give us all your valuables!" The shorter one brandished his gun in their faces, clearly impatient with the talking. 

"Yeah, turn out your pockets now or else." 

Two guns being brandished around was pretty persuasive and Ace reluctantly emptied his pockets. Mr. Drew did the same. 

Their wallets and keys clattered onto the hard ground along with the phones and a tiny little box that made Ace wince when it bounced on the ground.

The leader bent down and picked up the box, opening it as he spoke.

“Don’t open that…” Ace trailed off as the robber ignored his words. 

"A ring? Oooh, fancy!" The robbers crowded around the box, mocking Ace and the engagement ring. 

"You're planning on proposing to Nancy?" The tinge of shock that comes with Carson's words isn't disapproval per say, but that fact that it's surprising isn't a great sign. They'd been together for years and Ace and Nancy were both settled into good jobs; this was the next step. Everyone had seen it coming.

Ace didn't know what to say so he stared at his potential father-in-law, hoping he didn't look too devastated. Carson shot Ace a wide eyed look that made Ace want to wince. He hadn't intended for Mr. Drew to find out like this. Ace had planned on informing Mr. Drew of his plans tonight to propose to Nancy. Seems like that part of the plan was ruined. 

"Play along" muttered Carson from the side of his mouth. 

"With what?" whispered Ace. 

"With this." 

As soon as the words left his mouth, Carson swung towards Ace. 

"I'm not going to let you marry my daughter!" snarled Carson. The robbers looked at each other confused, but the slow smirks on their face said they were enjoying the sudden turn of events. 

"Mr. D! What the heck?" Ace didn't have to fake the hurt in his voice. The thought that Mr. Drew didn't approve of him and Nancy pained him to his core. 

"You're a no good dishwasher!" 

Ace hadn't been a dishwasher in years. Definitely an act then.

"Well you're a lawyer!" shot back Ace. "Dishwashers are more useful than lawyers. And I'm gonna marry your daughter anyway!" 

The big guy laughed at that. "Stick it to the old man!" 

Carson suddenly stood up and started to lunge at Ace who scrambled up on his feet in fear. 

"Argh!" 

The little guy reached for his gun, but a hand from the leader stopped him. 

"Let 'em fight. This is the most fun I've had all week." Carson had his arms around Ace and was trying to wrestle him to the ground while Ace was trying to figure out what the heck was happening. Then it hit him; it was obvious what Carson was doing. 

While they were faux grappling, Ace muttered under his breath. 

"We smash into them, knock em over, kick the gun, grab our stuff, and we get the heck out of here."

Carson briefly nodded and went back to yelling indistinctly. His anger was pretty convincing and Ace wasn’t entirely sure he was faking it.

Ace shuffled closer and closer towards the robbers who didn't notice, they were laughing so much. The blonde one was even wiping a tear from his face. They were distracted and it was time.

Suddenly Carson lashed out at the leader, knocking the gun out of his hands and leaving the blonde to Ace. He couldn’t see what Mr. Drew was doing, but he couldn’t focus on that right now. The blonde tried to advance but Ace smacked the gun out of his hand and curled his fists up. The robber dodged Ace’s first punch, but didn’t see the second one coming. The blonde robber fell down with a whimper. 

Ace turned to face Mr. Drew who was holding his own. "This is better than our last road trip!" 

"Last time I went to prison!" yelled Carson as he clocked the tall one in the face. The brown-haired man crumpled to the ground. 

"I know! That's why this is better– no prison!" 

"We're gonna get you!" The blonde tried to get up off the ground, but was thrown back down with a well placed kick from Ace. 

A third man walked around the side of the building and paused when he saw Ace and Carson standing over the two men. Maybe the guy was coming to see what all the commotion was about, thought Ace.

He was proven wrong when the tall robber screamed “Get ‘em Jerry!” and the third man started lunging at Carson and Ace. 

"Go, go, go!" screamed Ace as he and Mr. Drew sprinted towards the car. If they could get into the car and avoid getting captured again, they’d be fine. 

Carson and Ace dove into the front seat and as soon as he had the keys in, Ace floored the gas pedal and the car peeled out of the station, leaving the three would-be robbers behind. 

From the back mirror, Carson could see the tall robber struggling to stand up with the help of Jerry apparently and the third one was waving the gun around feebly. 

"That's what you get for messing with Ace Hardy and Carson "Killer" Drew!" whooped Ace, throwing back his head in triumph.

Eventually the adrenaline wore off and silence settled in the car again. There was still tension, but it was a different tension than before. 

"Do you really not approve of me marrying Nancy?" Ace had to ask, had to know if he was going to propose. He'd propose either way, but it would be good to clear the air. 

Carson looked startled. 

"What makes you think that?" 

Ace took a hand off the wheel to gesture vaguely backwards. "Ya know, what you said back there and just the vibe I get when I'm around you and Nancy." 

Carson sat back and let out a sigh. 

"Ace, you're a good man and I'd love for you to marry Nancy." 

There was an unspoken "but" at the end of that sentence. 

"But–" Ace prompted. 

"But," sighed Carson. "Everytime I'm alone with you, I can't help but think of the prison escape which makes me think of that whole horrible period of time where Nancy hated me enough to think I was a murderer and you broke about fifty federal laws to break me out of prison." 

"I don't know about fifty," demurred Ace. 

"It was definitely fifty." 

"I think breaking you out of federal prison and saving your life proves my son-in-law status." 

He earned a chuckle for that, but Carson soon became serious again and Ace had to say something. 

"Mr. Drew, Nancy loves you and she always has. None of us knew what we were dealing with at that time and you know that Nancy regretted it with every fiber of her being." 

Carson slumped down even further in his seat. "I know it's unfair of me to pin my insecurities on you and I do apologize for that."

Honestly, at this point, Ace didn't care about Mr. Drew disapproving of him and Nancy. He just wanted Mr. Drew to stop feeling so guilty about something that wasn’t his fault. 

"Maybe instead of thinking about your time in prison, you could think of this trip instead when you see me. Today was pretty memorable."

"That it was." Carson chuckled again.

Silence filled the car again, but this time it was the comfortable kind. The air had been cleared and it was a good first step.

~

The ride didn't take too much longer after their little adventure and Nancy was waiting for them at the door, her arms crossed and a smile on her face. 

"You guys took longer than me. What happened?" 

Mr. Drew looked at Ace and both men started to laugh. The day had been so ridiculous and cathartic, there was no way they weren't going to laugh. Ace was practically clutching his sides and Carson had doubled over with laughter. 

Nancy crossed her arms with an amused smirk. "So clearly something happened between the two of you today." 

That was a definite understatement and it set off another round of laughter.

"I think you should tell her, son."

The word son made Ace whip his head toward Mr. Drew. A smile spread across his face and Ace pulled Nancy to his side. The box in his back pocket was begging to be brought out; it wasn't the romantic proposal Ace had planned, there were supposed to be candles, but he knew Nancy would love it anyway. 

"It all started when a gorgeous woman called me to ask me to pick up her dad..."

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also at thelaststranger on tumblr.


End file.
